Events
Main Street Program
Welcome to Hartwell!
Hartwell, Georgia has been a Main Street City since 1997. Beautiful downtown Hartwell abounds with lovely historic homes and a charming, vibrant downtown business area featuring beautifully preserved buildings circa 1879 to 1925.
Shopping, dining, relaxing, and entertainment…downtown Hartwell offers something for everyone, all year long!
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT VISITING HARTWELL!
We're excited to have you here! Please enjoy our free parking in downtown Hartwell while you shop and dine.. If you cannot find street parking, a municipal lot is located one block from the Hart County Courthouse Square on Johnson Street at Carolina.
You will find retail, restaurants, services and entertainment information at one of the two downtown kiosks located at the courthouse in the middle of the block on Franklin and on Howell.
If you have more questions, please feel free to visit the Main Street Office at 456 E Howell St or the Hart County Chamber of Commerce on S. Carolina Street. We are here for you!
THINGS TO DO IF YOU HAVE ONLY 24 HOURS IN HARTWELL:
Book a room for a couple of nights at Hartwell Suites right in downtown, or The Beacon Bed and Breakfast for a night on the lake. Take in a morning yoga class at Empower Yoga, after have a coffee at Common Ground. Go to Hartwell Marina, rent a boat and spend the morning taking a tour of Lake Hartwell. See Hartwell Dam from the Lake. Stop at Southern Hart Brewing Company for a local craft beer or seltzer and lunch before hitting the shops. Must sees are Dressing Dreams, Empire South, G's Southern Traditions, Winnie J's and Market 50. In the afternoon, go to Hang it Up Gallery, Twelve South or The Art Center for local art and then take a stroll through the Hart County Botanical Gardens (its Free). For dinner, enjoy fine dining at Latin Flavors or 329 Steakhouse. Wind down your day with some local musicians at High Cotton Music Hall or a play a the Hart County Community Theater. Go to sleep, you’re worn out!
10 REASONS TO SHOP LOCAL:
For every $100 spent at a locally owned business, $45 goes back into the community and our tax base. For every $100 spent at a chain store, only $14 comes back into the community. Independent businesses support other independent businesses- critical for an active economy.
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Main Street-Many communities are recreating a Main Street area in order to bring back that sense of community that urban sprawl & strip centers have destroyed. Hartwell has the real thing- our Main Street economic center has been in place for many years.
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Jobs-According to the Small Business Administration, independent businesses are one of the largest employers nationally.
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Smart Growth-Local stores help sustain vibrant, compact, walkable districts that in turn help reduce congestion, pollution, and loss of green space.
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Community Roots-Neighborhood businesses are owned by people who live here, work here, have families here, spend their money here and care about Hartwell’s future.
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Healthy Competition-Local businesses can quickly respond to changing market conditions and create innovative products and services to meet demand.
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Entrepreneurship-Hartwell is “Entrepreneur Friendly”: Independent businesses fuel economic growth and enable citizens to move out of low wage jobs into a stable financial future. The Hartwell DDA has a local Entrepreneur Initiative in place to assist local entrepreneurs.
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It’s unique-Independent businesses select products based on their own interests and the needs of their customers, not that of a national corporate sales headquarters.
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Charity begins at home-Neighborhood businesses generously support local nonprofits; an average 350% more than nonlocally owned businesses
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The personal touch-In an age of chain stores that are the same no matter where you go, local retailers add personal service and familiarity that tells you that your patronage counts.
“10 Reasons” was gathered in part from the Main Street Digest Monthly Publication.